I could not help but stand out on the balcony of Sera's apartment in Sydney and stare at the ocean waves. The sun was bright, and as it hit the blue crests of the waves, it reflected back at me, forcing me to quint. I was waiting for Bo to finish getting ready, our daughter had graduated from the University of New South Wales with her medical degree and was finally coming home to continue her education in biomedical genetic engineering. She was first going to begin her residency at the hospital I worked at, the same one that I had met the stranger in room four, who walked up behind me, slipping an arm around my waist. "I am ready, I don't want to be late for dinner with our noodle."
I looked down at Bo, smiling as she was dressed the most conservatively I had ever seen her. She was wearing a black pencil skirt that actually went to her knees, a dark grey loose top that hugged her curves but left much to mystery. "you look amazing."
"you aren't too shabby yourself, Dr." Bo kissed my cheek, "Noodle is waiting for us in the living room." she glanced at the view, "but I do not blame you for wanting to stay out here a little longer." I sighed hard, "we should come back here for our anniversary." Bo and I were slowly approaching our twenty five year anniversary, which was hard to believe since neither of us looked like we would be in our late fifties, Bo looked as amazing as she did the day I met her and I was forever thirty one. I felt Bo's hand come into mine and pull me from my ocean view and back into the spacious apartment.
I smiled when I saw Sera sitting with Kenzi as they shared a drink. Sera was now twenty one, long gone was the rebellious flame red hair, and the huffiness of a teenage girl. Sera had gone back to her natural blonde color, it was a smidge lighter than mine and she had cut it short, only falling to her jaw line. When she stood up she was tall, elegant and stunning as she had begun to grow into herself fully as a gorgeous young woman. She smiled at me, "mom is finally ready, I told her she shouldn't be worried about what she is wearing. Its just going to be us and Jase." Sera set her drink down, holding a hand out to Kenzi to grab and pull her up. Sera was wearing dark grey dress pants, a sleeveless burgundy V-neck top, as she bent to grab her purse, I caught sight of the tattoo of the phrase "to say I love you, one must be able to say the I." in Gaelic on her hip. She caught me looking at it, "mum, its just a tattoo."
"I know." I let it be at that.
Sera had gotten the tattoo in Ireland a few weeks after she sort of ran away from home. Her heart was broken and it took her a month to finally tell us that she was in Ireland and was moving to Australia to attend university. It had been the hardest month for Bo and I, Sera did call every other day but it was hard for us to sit idly by and wait for our daughter. As soon as she told us, we flew to Australia and waited for her, smothering her with hugs and empty threats, and mainly just love. After settling her into her apartment, leaving Kenzi with her, Bo and I walked back to our own hotel room. Bo had been quiet as we walked through the bustling streets of Sydney, "Bo, are you okay?"
"she's been feeding, and feeding a lot." Bo looked at me, "i can tell, she is giving off the same aura I do when I have had a full feed." I felt her squeeze my hand tighter, "i passed that onto her, when I had my heart broken a long time ago, I went on a feeding frenzy and left a lot of broken hearts and empty souls behind me." I could tell she was worried if Sera had mastered her control, if she only fed from Fae or if she had indulged in humans. I stopped us and turned Bo to look at me, "our daughter's heart is bigger than her need to feed the succubus inside of her, we can ask her but I think we have nothing to worry about." at that I felt Sera in my thoughts, telling me she had only fed from fae and to tell her mom to relax. I smiled and kissed bo on the forehead, "talk to her tomorrow and I think she will tell you everything you need to know." I hugged Bo hard, "I am just happy that she is not hiding from us anymore."
Sera did tell Bo the next day, everything. She had gone on a feeding frenzy, her sexual side had been awakened like Bo's had in the storm of heartbreak, she told Bo everything as I watched my wife's face go very pale at the idea of her teenage daughter running sexually rampant across Ireland for the last month. I didn't digest it any better but, it was the terms of having a succubus for a daughter.
Bo had to go over some other uncomfortable points of being a succubus and the age old, use protection speech and try not to get a girl pregnant, Sera smiled and hugged her, "mom, its okay. I think I got it out of my system, I honestly prefer monogamy over the one night stand." Sera was right, she had a couple of serious relationships, one with a boy she met in her first year at the university that lasted almost a year, the second was with a lovely girl, a human girl, named Addie, that looked a lot like Tamsin, with a fae father and was Sera's study partner. Sera fell hard and fast for the girl, and was happier than she had ever been. Bo and I met her once when we went to visit during the holidays, since our daughter refused to return home, saying there were still too many painful memories lying in that city. The two girls were a perfect fit and reminded me so much of Bo and I at the beginning of our romance.
that relationship lasted two years until the girl moved to the states for a research project. They broke up and Sera was heartbroken again, she was willing to follow the girl wherever, but the girl felt it best they went their separate ways, throwing another heartbreak into Sera's world.
Then Sera met Jase Watson, a ridiculously good looking chemical engineer student, he was also a light fae druid. Jase was tall, dark auburn hair, deep blue grey eyes and a smile that even made Bo blush when he issued it easily. Jase had chased Sera as they shared the same classes, always asking her out on dates and never bowing into her gentle rejections. He finally won her over after months and months, the two had been dating for the last two years and I could see that my daughter was in love and happy. Jase had passed the family tests and did not care that his girlfriend was set to be the next ash in a matter of decades, depending on when Finnegan was ready to step down and when Sera was ready to take on the role.
Bo fidgeted with her pencil skirt, "noodle, is this outfit okay?"
Sera rolled her eyes, "mom, I told you. You looked fine in your first outfit, you didn't have to change. This is just a family dinner."
bo folded her arms, "I know, I just thought maybe leather was a little too low class for this restaurant." she quickly made eye contact with a completely leather clad Kenzi, clutching a wine glass, "uh, thanks bo bo?"
Bo laughed and walked to Kenzi, "you make anything high class and gorgeous, Kenz." Kenzi looked over Bo's shoulder as she was hugged, "kiddo, I think your moms has a little bit of a crush on yo boyfriend. She has never been this concerned with how demure she looks. Ever." Bo pulled out of the hug and playfully slapped Kenzi on the arm, as Sera and I laughed, "my boyfriend is pretty dreamy."
Sera went to the door when she heard a soft knock, opening it up to reveal Jase standing there in a button down, dark jeans and a jacket. I even had to admit, the man was gorgeous. I felt Bo's hand on my elbow, "should I be jealous?" I smirked at her, "should I be jealous is the better question?" Bo shook her head and kissed me, "he is stupid good looking, but no one can compare to how beautiful you are, Dr. Lewis."
Jase walked over, his thick Australian accent adding to his charm, "how are you Dr. Lewis, Mrs. Lewis? I am glad you made it for the graduation, Sera here has been talking non stop how excited she has been to have you all here." he took both Bo and i's hands in his, kissing the tops like a gentleman would, making both Bo and I blush. He then turned to Kenzi, "oy! AK! Com'ere!" Kenzi giggled and ran to Jase, allowing him to scoop her up in a almost brotherly hug. Kenzi, like with so many others, had instantly won over Jase and they became close.
Jase set down Kenzi and moved to stand next to Sera, "you look amazing, my love." he placed a soft kiss on Sera's cheek as she blushed, "thank you Jase." she kissed him back and smiled. "lets head to dinner?" jase nodded, held out his hand to Kenzi, "yes lets." Kenzi giggled as she took his hand and led the two out of the apartment. Bo swayed over to me, holding out her elbow, I took it and let her lead me out of the apartment.
Dinner was easy and fun, I marveled at the young woman my daughter had become. She was elegant, classy and still had the goofy characteristics that came with growing up with Kenzi. Jase was a perfect balance and extremely engaging as he eagerly went over his travel plans to follow Sera back and begin work at a chemical company that just hired him in our home city. After dinner the five of us walked along the circular quay, enjoying the happiness in the air. Bo and I walked hand in hand, watching our daughter laugh and joke with Kenzi and Jase. Jase looked behind, and smiled as he dropped back to walk with us, "did you ladies enjoy dinner?"
Bo smiled, "yes, it was great. Thank you for taking us, Jase. "yes, thank you." I smiled as hard as my wife as we held hands.
jase nodded, "it is one of my favorites, and the first place I took Sera when she finally agreed to go out with me." he paused, "Dr. Lewis, Mrs. Lewis. I have something I want to ask of you." he gently stopped us and stood in front of us, looking back to see Sera was completely distracted with Kenzi as they looked at buying boomerang's at a tourist shop. He smiled, "I know normal tradition would be to ask the blessing of the father, but seeing as Sera adores you both." he took a deep breath and smiled, "id it okay if I would, could ask your amazing, beautiful daughter to marry me? I mean, of course after we get back to the states and the dust has settled from the move." he was mildly rambling.
I looked at Bo who was laughing, I put my hand on his arm, "you have my blessing, I think you are great for her and a welcomed addition to the family." I looked to bo, "bo?"
Bo raised her eyebrows, "hmmm, you have my blessing as well. I agree with my wife, but the last and most important blessing you will have to get is." she pointed at Kenzi who was trying to throw a boomerang as she stood outside the shop, only succeeding in throwing it to the ground as Sera laughed. "the great Aunt Kenzi. She will be the hard sell, and the most important."
Jase's face went from panicked worry to a giant smile, "and here I thought it would have been the grandfather I would have to win over."
I shrugged, "that too, he is going to be harder than the rest of us." I winked at him. "but I am sure Finnegan will come around." I looked up and aw Sera looking back at us, smiling wide when her eyes met Jase's. He sighed, "ladies, she is worth any battle with the ash." he smiled as Sera held out her hand to him, "excuse me ladies." he turned and embraced us, "thank you, I promise I will only do the best by her." he let us go and ran towards sera, almost getting hit by a errant boomerang.
"you could have totally renovated my room, mum." Sera was standing in her bedroom looking around at it. It was untouched since the day she left five years ago. "your mom missed you more than you think." I set her bag down on the bed, "i did too." I sighed, "welcome home, noodle."
Sera turned to look at me, "you will never stop calling me that will you?" I shook my head, "even if you are a thousand years old, you will always be noodle."
Sera laughed as she opened her bag, "thanks for letting me stay here until the apartment is ready." she pulled out some of her clothes and set them on the bed.
"this will always be your home, Sera." I helped empty her bag, "when is jase arriving?"
"I think middle of next week? He has a ton more stuff to pack up." she smiled, "that and I start work at the hospital in a couple days. He said it would be best if he wasn't around to distract me." she dropped onto the bed, "so what is new around here? How is the old hometown and compound?"
I smiled, "nothing much has changed, actually nothing has changed." I laughed as I lifted up the last bag, heavier than I expected. "what do you have in here? A koala bear?"
Sera pushed some of her blonde hair behind her ear, reaching for the bag she shook her head. Setting the bag on her lap, she opened it up and pulled out a large red velvet sack, Standing up she set it on her desk, "i need to give this back." she pulled the red velvet sack, revealing Tamsins helmet. She set the sack down next to it, "maybe she can give it to her own daughter one day, jase is creeped out by it too." she looked at me, "how is the Valkyrie?"
Sera had not asked about Tamsin in years, the two had not seen each other since that night Sera left and whenever the Valkyrie was brought up in conversation, Sera quickly changed the conversation. "tamsin is good. She has been in Russia for the last little while." I smiled and stared at the helmet. "she should be coming home tonight, but I should warn you, she is different these days."
Sera looked at me strangely, "what do you mean? Married life too domestic for the winged wonder?"
I stared, "you don't know do you?" I was surprised that my daughter had no idea of what had happened over the last few months. Sera shrugged, "i don't, remember when I was in Ireland and worked with the ancient faes up there to control my thought reading powers so they can lay dormant until I need them? It has made life much more enjoyable." she smiled, "so, no, I don't know, mum."
"tamsin didn't get married. She ran on the wedding day an hour before she was to meet Anya at the end of the aisle." I fingered at the memory of the fallout, Anya was devastated and Tamsin ran to Valhalla to immediately pick up assignments from Odin.
"holy shit, the brave old Valkyrie is a runaway bride?" Sera looked hard at me.
"i would not word it like that, but yes. Her fear of settling was too much for her to bear. She has fallen into some of her old habits and has been in Russia since then, doing double time for Odin."
Sera let out a breath, "I remember how much love was in her thoughts that day Anya proposed to her, I wonder what happened."
I smiled and patted Sera's leg, "there was a lot of love in her thoughts, but for someone else that has been haunting my friend for years." I stood up, "Tamsin will be coming over tonight, be kind if you two cross paths."
Sera laughed, "mum, I am not a sassy teenager anymore, I will be civil and it might be good to see the old lady after all these years." I let out a breath, "I mean it, she isn't the old lady you remember." I stood up, "your mustang is at the compound in storage." I tossed her the keys, "welcome home noodle."
Sera smiled and shook her head, "thanks mum." I left my daughter sitting in her old bedroom, staring at the old posters and the old formulas on the bulletin board, smiling at the joy of being back home.
"woot! Woot! Here is to my awesome niece being back where she belongs and finally being old enough to do shots with me!" Kenzi held up the vodka shot as we all stood in the dal. She clinked shot glasses with Sera and both downed the vodka in a one gulp. Both cringing at the burning sensation of Tricks homemade vodka. Sera then was introduced to Kenzi's new boyfriend, Hale. Dyson's partner who had been vigorously chasing Kenzi for years and finally won.
I sat with Bo at the bar, Trick had closed the bar down as soon as he saw his great granddaughter had returned. Bo nudged me, as I watched the crowd, "you didn't drink your shot." I looked down at the vodka, "I know, I cant handle Tricks mix, it makes me want more and you know what happens when I get drunk."
Bo smirked, "I do exactly, that's why you should drink up." she pushed the vodka closer too me. She stood up, kissing me, "I will go get more, I want to say hi to Dyson and Hale before they all get too drunk." I kissed her back and let my hand linger in hers for a moment as she walked from me.
Before I could pick up the shot glass, a familiar hand snatched it up, setting a empty glass back down. "you shouldn't let good booze go to waste, captain."
I turned as Tamsin sat on the seat next to me, she was in her dress uniform and looked tired and half drunk. She winked at me, "I did bring you and the wife some vodka back from Russia, but I drank most of it on the way here." she reached behind the bar and grabbed a bottle of whiskey, "I was headed to your house when I picked up you were here, win win for me." she poured a heavy glass of whiskey and took a large sip. I lightly pushed the bottle to the side, Tamsin had gone back to drinking and her random visiting ways of the past. "how long have you been back."
"about an hour. I forgot I don't have anywhere to live right now, that's why I was coming to you. That spare room still free at the crash pad?"
I looked at Tamsin as she smiled and her eyes caught something across the bar, her eyebrows furrowing, nodding over at bo, "you and the wife spicing things up in the bedroom?"
my eyes followed hers, settling on Sera holding onto Bo as they shared another shot with Dyson and Hale, I laughed, "no, we have plenty of spice left in our sex life and we aren't into kinky family things."
"what captain? You know I am looking at that blonde draped all over the succubus, right?"
I smiled wider, "you mean Sera draped all over her mom?"
Tamsin looked at me, then back to the other two, "shut up. That's the midget?" she took a deep sip of her whiskey, mumbling, "holy shit." she set the glass back down, eyeing the bottle that was in front of me, "when did she get home?" I saw her glance drift back to sera and stare at her, the girl had changed immensely in the last five years, growing up inside and out, and anyone could see how gorgeous the girl was now. "she definitely grew up." The last part came out as a mumble into her whiskey glass.
"last night. I told you she is starting her residency at my old hospital before moving into her biomedical genetic research." I put a hand on the Valkyries back, "you can go say hi you know."
Tamsin shook her head, "no, I am good. I haven't heard from the kid in five years and that is probably how she wants it to stay." Tamsin stood up and snatched the whiskey bottle from in front of me, "i still have the extra key, cool if I just head to the crash pad and pass out? Russia was a bitch of a trip."
"that's fine, we will be home later. Sera is staying in her old room until her apartment is ready."
Tamsin smiled, "so that means epic family breakfast in the morning?" I could see the liquor settling into the Valkyrie.
"yes, mom and mum will be making a giant breakfast buffet." Sera stopped to stand next to me, setting her empty drink glass on the bar top, "hello Tamsin." her voice was soft and kind, I knew it was because of what I had told her about the wedding never happening.
"hey midget, sorry old habit, especially since you are now taller than me." she smiled, "I like the hair, but I did like the flaming red you had more." I could see Tamsin clutch hard onto the whiskey bottle, she looked down.
Sera laughed, "I liked it too, but it was too hard to maintain with my school work."
An awkward silence fell between everyone, Tamsin went to walk away when Sera gasped as two strong arms wrapped around her waist, picking her up. Tamsin went to lunge at the attacker before I held out an arm and held her back, watching Jase set Sera down and smile as she playfully smacked him for scaring her.
"oh my love, I know its a surprise but I finished early and could not wait any longer." he kissed her hard, dropping to one knee, "I also cant wait any longer for this." he went into his pocket, "I just left the ash, the final blessing I had to get before I ask." he smiled at Sera, "Seraphina Margaret Lewis, with the blessings of your mothers and Kenzi, I kneel before you and ask, will you marry me?"
Sera was shocked, her hands covered her mouth as she looked at Bo and Kenzi, both wiping at tears, then she looked to me, then back at the man kneeled before her, "Jase, I...uh." she smiled as he pulled the ring out of the box, a simple diamond ring and slipped it onto her finger, "Sera, I love you, have from the moment you walked in my advance biochemical class and the bottom of your backpack ripped open. You wouldn't let me help you pick up your things." he smiled as he stood up, "will you marry me?"
Sera looked at her hand and jumped in his arms, "yes, of course yes." everyone in the dal clapped and congratulated the young couple. I went to stand up when Tamsin grabbed my elbow, looking at me deep and concerned, she whispered, "I don't mean to throw a damper on the party, but I don't like that guy. There's something about him that isn't right."
I looked at Tamsin, "he is light fae and good to her." I felt like saying that Tamsin was just upset because of her own memories of a proposal. Tamsin glared at me hard, "its not that captain, there is something not right, and it goes beyond my own personal feelings of marriage." I watched as she glanced at Sera, "i am going to leave, Captain. I will see you at home." with that, the Valkyrie left unnoticed by the rest of the bar, all focused on congratulating the newly engaged couple.
Staring at Jase and his wide smile, hugging Bo and Kenzi, I tried focusing on what Tamsin might have picked up, but I felt nothing and saw nothing but how happy he was with my daughter.
I found Tamsin passed out on my couch in the lab, her using her uniform jacket as a pillow, the empty whiskey bottle still in her hand. I sighed as I pulled the bottle from her hands and set it on the table. I tried to lifting her up, but found her drunken weight to be too much.
"here, let me help mum." Sera came in through the door, she bent down and lifted Tamsin up, shaking her head at me to help, she held the comatose Valkyrie as she took her upstairs to the spare room. Gently setting her down and covering her with a blanket, she sat on the edge of the bed, "did she use to drink this much?"
"she did, then stopped when she started her new lifecycle. It looks like its picked back up over the last little while." I motioned for Sera to follow me, "she will be cranky in the morning."
Sera paused at the door looking at the woman on the bed, "is that what you meant that I always got the best of her?" she looked at me as she quietly closed the door behind her.
"yes, Tamsin was happy and calm, finding release from the curse a Norn set on her when she lost someone. I am beginning to believe it will take longer for her to shake off the loss of Sophia. She has fallen back into old habits trying to get through life, she knows how hurt Anya is and that is making her spiral deeper down. After almost a hundred years, Tamsin still does not know how to love like she once did."
Sera stood next to me when we got to the driveway, "who is Sophia?"
"Sophia was Tamsins Cate." I hung my head down smiling lightly. Sera sighed, "that explains a lot." Sera had been told the story of Cate when she was younger as a fairytale that she quickly figured out the truth behind when she found my box of military memories. Sera looked at the stars, "I hope she finds a place for her heart, she deserves it." sera let out a breath, "I wish I could help her." she then walked past me and back into the house, I caught the glint of her diamond engagement ring, myself wondering many things.
I couldn't lie to myself, it had been weird seeing the old Valkyrie after so many years. She had not changed in the time I last saw her, just that she looked messier and sad. I sat on the edge of my bed, staring at the ancient helmet that had been every where with me, my eyes drifting from the helmet to the spare room window. I ran a hand through my hair, my engagement ring cool against my skin, I dropped my hand to look at the ring Jase gave me and smiled, I was in love with him, he made me happy and when I thought about the future it made sense. But when I saw Tamsin in the dal, memories of Addie came rushing back.
Addie was my way of sorting through my feelings and they were the best two years of my life. I found new respect for my parents knowing that my mom had to struggle so hard to maintain a relationship with a human and not kill mum. I had fallen in love with Addie so hard because she reminded me so much of the Valkyrie I had been harboring a teenage crush for so long, and the woman who broke my heart harder than my first boyfriend did, all it took was seeing that ring on her finger, even though it was the wrong finger, it was the idea that I had lost her before I even had the chance to explore my crush of her. The combination of the two blows to the heart that day was the reason why I left my parents in the dark and flew straight to Ireland. I laughed at myself, I was so young and as smart as I am, I still had no clue about life.
I reached for the helmet and held it, Jase hated the thing from the moment he laid eyes on it and begged me to stash it away. I had intended to return it the woman, feeling it was no longer fitting in my life. But as I held it my hands for the first time in years, I could brightly remember when Tamsin first gave it to me, I tried so hard to read her thoughts but the apparent block at birth was still there and I picked up nothing. I still couldn't read the woman's thoughts, I wanted too more than ever now so I could help her. What drove me more than anything was the heavy feeling I had around my heart when I saw her for the first time at the dal, it was something I had not bothered to deal with when I made my escape, I knew I needed to before I married Jase.
I was no longer angry at her for leaving me when I was five, or for what I thought I saw when I was sixteen, but the other feelings I had were still present, faint but present and I knew the longer I stayed in this city, close to her. I sighed and set the helmet down on the desk and smiled as I felt my parents come up the stairs, whispering that they had to be quiet since I was next door. I grabbed my jacket and sent a silent message to my mum that I would be in the crash pad with AK. I laughed as I heard my mom mumble how she still couldn't get over how I could do that. I walked to their bedroom door and knocked lightly before pushing it open, my parents stood across from the each other, their clothes slightly disheveled, "mom, I can read you like an open book, and to be honest, I can only hope that after almost twenty five years of marriage, that I have a fraction of the passion and desire you two have." I winked at them both, "I will stay with AK for the night so you two can be the old married couple you are." I closed the bedroom door, walking out to the crash pad, my fingers absently ran over the engagement ring on my hand. Driving home the fact that I did hope Jase and I would have the same undying love and passion my parents had.
Tamsin was face down on the kitchen table, hands over her head trying to drown out the sounds Bo and Sera were making as they made breakfast. Sera walked over to her and set down a glass of water, tapping her shoulder lightly, "drink this, old lady, it will help your hangover."
Tamsin held her head up squinting at Sera, "you call me old lady again and I will start calling you midget again."
Sera shrugged, "as long as it gets you to drink your water, you need to hydrate."
Tamsin looked at me as I set the table, "Captain, there are far too many doctors in this house, where is Moscow? She usually balances the scales."
I pushed the water closer to Tamsin, "Dr. Lewis the third is right, you need to hydrate. You were dead to the world last night."
Tamsin frowned, "if only I really was dead." she let out a hard sigh and chugged the water down, "where's your fiancé, midget? Shouldn't he be joining us for the family meal?" Tamsins voice was back to her original raspy gruffness, along with the lack of filtering anything that came out of her mouth.
I glanced at my daughter, completely expecting a snarky comment that came with dealing with the Valkyrie, instead she set down a plate of food for Tamsin, "no, he is at his new job, starting orientation today." she smiled, "I am glad, because I would hate for him to see that my parents like to harbor the homeless." Sera ran her eyes down Tamsins clothes, she was still wearing her uniform from last night, wrinkled and stained from sleeping in it. Tamsin was also in need of a shower to wash away the lingering booze smell. Tamsin shot Sera a dirty look, "ha ha kid, nice to see nothing has changed."
Sera paused and shot her a look back, "plenty has changed, Valkyrie. Sober up and you will see it."
I saw Tamsins jaw clench, I sat down next to her and put another glass of water in front of her, "leave it. You are both adults now."
Tamsin said nothing, grabbed her plate and glass of water and walked out of the kitchen, mumbling something. Bo shook her head, "I thought we were past this, noodle."
"mom I am not going to let her dig at my fiancé." Sera set a few more plates down on the table, "I am trying to be nice to her, but its hard when she reeks like a distillery and is being a ass."
"bo, I will go talk to her." I looked at Sera, "things are going to be tense until you move to the apartment, I told you that."
when I walked into the crash pad, I heard the shower running and saw the untouched plate of food sitting on the kitchen counter. I picked it up and put it in the microwave, to keep it warm. I then moved to the spare room and started collecting the empty bottles in and around Tamsins bed.
"captain, I don't need you to clean up my messes or come and be the buffer between the kid and I." Tamsin was wearing nothing but a towel as she went to the closet to grab a old t-shirt and a pair of jeans.
"maybe I put too much faith in that you and sera would be fine." I dropped a few bottles into the empty trash can, looking at how many more were lingering around. I looked up at Tamsin as she dropped her towel and I saw her bare back, and all of the scars she held. Some of them looked new, she glanced over her shoulder, "don't worry, they eventually heal. Its apart of the job of flying into battle and collecting the lucky souls."
Tamsin pulled on her shirt and jeans, turning to face me, "look, captain, I do care about the kid always have, I sent her birthday cards every year I had an address for her, I don't ever remember yours, Bo's or shit even Moscow's. At the same time I haven't heard from the kid in years, and I know what you are going to say, but let me say it. That Jase, I don't have the greatest vibe from him and it is bothering me. He gives me the same feeling Seamus used too." Tamsin propped her hands on her hips, "its like there is something he wants more than to marry the kid."
hearing Seamus name always made me feel slimy, "he is not Seamus. I poked around in his thoughts and I cant find anything to lead me to think any different." I looked at my oldest and best friend's blue eyes, "I have always trusted you, and the things you feel. But I just don't see it yet."
Tamsin rubbed at her wet hair with the towel, "fair enough, and I understand. I will be poking around in his life though, I cant shake what my gut is telling me." she threw the towel on the bed, "just trust me a little."
I stared in her eyes, remembering all of the times she asked me to trust her, she never failed me. "fine. But if Sera finds out, I will not be refereeing that fight." I reached down and grabbed the rest of the empties and threw them into the garbage can, "one last thing, if you are going to live here again, this." I pointed at the overflowing can, "has to stop."
Tamsin looked away, "I can only make half promises, captain. I tend to fuck up the full promises I make." she snatched up the towel and walked back into the bathroom, she was talking about Anya and the promise that came with accepting the engagement ring.
-Two weeks later-
my bags and boxes were packed and sitting in the trunk of the mustang, I was spending a little more time in my old room, pulling down old posters and pictures for my parents. I wanted to clean up the walls so they would be more compelled to actually renovate the room into a weapon room for mom or a new baby's room. I could feel the thoughts of having another little one pour out of my mom and the hesitation of getting pregnant again pour out of my mum. She would never tell my mom how much it had taken out of her to carry and birth me, more so the small fear that she would repeat the mistake she made with me and the Norn. I knew there would be a little sibling in my near future, most likely after I was married or after I was ash, I secretly hoped it would be sooner than later. Strangely entertaining the idea of being pregnant with my mum at the same time.
Dropping some of the older posters into a tube, I looked around at the almost bare room. Jase and I had moved into the apartment a few days ago and I needed to collect the last bits of my favorite things. I had already pulled down all of the old formulas and hid them in my secret box that I had hidden in a secret place under mums lab desk in the garage. I was still receiving royalties from the wrinkling cream pulled from AK's youth formula. I had sold it when I arrived in Australia and was more then set at the age of eighteen to live as I chose outside of my royal family, I mainly socked it away and saved it. After Jase and I were married and I was finally out of my residency and doing my research, I wanted to move back to Ireland and live in an old, massive, isolated house in the green countryside.
I picked up the last of my belongings and reached for the velvet bag on my desk. Lifting it up and still marveling at how heavy it was, I tucked it under my arm and walked to the mustang.
Closing the trunk I still held the velvet bag, I looked up at the spare room, I knew the Valkyrie was in there, her third new old truck was on the street, leaking oil all over the curb. I sighed, I had to give the helmet back to her, I couldn't keep it in the apartment. Jase was very vocal about not having it our house , and I couldn't leave it with my parents, for fear of AK wearing it as she played her video games.
I stood outside of her room, I could hear the soft sounds of music and Tamsin humming. I closed my eyes and tried, again, to see if I could pick up on anything she was thinking or even feeling. She had cut back on the drinking as my mum asked of her, but she was still drinking. Even when she went on her trips for Odin, which scared me more than I wanted to admit. When I was little Tamsin had told me some of the stories of the battles she had been in, I knew how dangerous they were and that she needed to be clear headed.
I opened my eyes after I could not pick up anything and knocked lightly on the door. Tamsin opened the door, "Moscow, you are late, we missed the matinee of killer cows." she paused when she saw me, "hey kid, I thought you were Kenzi."
"She's still at Hale's, currently freaking out that she overslept and missed the matinee." I smiled as I could read my aunts thoughts clearly. "I just wanted to drop this off." I held out the velvet bag, "i cleaned out the rest of my stuff to take to the apartment. This is the last thing."
I watched as the Valkyries eyes settled on the bag, her jaw tense, "I gave that to you to keep, kid."
"I know, but it doesn't feel right to keep it anymore, you should have it back and it gives Jase the creeps." I stared at her and I could see the frustration on her face
"I want you to keep it, I gave it to you for a reason." Tamsin let go of the door and sat down on her bed, reaching for a half empty bottle of amber liquid. I frowned, "it's a little early."
She shrugged, "it was five o'clock where I just was." she let go of the bottle and leaned forward, I saw scrapes on her hands. I set the helmet down and went to her, "you should clean those before they get infected."
Tamsin looked at me, "I am fine, Doctor." Her tone hard with sarcasm.
"don't be an ass, Tamsin. I know you don't heal like we do, and I know how easily infection sets in." I held out my hand, "I am not here to fight with you." Tamsin sighed and took my hand, it felt warm and I could feel the gentle ridges of her wings against my palm, letting me pull her up, "you are exactly like the captain. Stubborn."
she followed me to the bathroom where I dug for some medical supplies, I set down a bottle of peroxide and a bag of cotton balls. "I know I am, but I also have my moms heart and as much as you irritate me, I care about you." I held her hand under the water, and then began dabbing at it with the peroxide. I looked up at one point and caught Tamsin staring at me,my heart jumped at the look in her eyes, just as soon as our eyes met, she looked away and out at the velvet bag on the bed.
"I don't want that back, kid. It was the last birthday gift I gave you, you should keep it."
I kept my focus on the scrapes on the woman's hands, "I got all of your cards." it came out in a whisper.
"what did you say kid? You also mumble like the captain." Tamsin flinched when I hit a sore spot. "I think that's good enough." she pulled her hand from mine. I took a deep breath and looked at her, "I said, I got every one of your cards. How did you always know where I was?"
I saw a slight blush come over the Valkyrie, she folded her arms and moved out of the bathroom as I cleaned up the bottle and the cotton balls, "you forget your mum and I share a psychic connection. She never told me directly where you were, but I just had to take a quick peek."
Tamsin moved around the room, suddenly busying herself with cleaning the room up. I closed the medicine cabinet door and stepped out, leaning against the bathroom doorframe, "then why did you never come to visit?" it was something I had wanted to ask for years, my parents visited often, AK was attached to my hip for the longest time until her and Hale started their relationship, and my grandparents all made visits, even Dyson stopped by once when he was in Sydney on a fae prisoner pickup. "if you knew where I was." After getting over my heartbreak of why I left, I wanted Tamsin to visit, to see her stupid cocky grin that always irritated me as much as I loved it.
"because, you have made it clear since you were seven years old." she turned to face me, "that I am far from one of your favorite people. You only tolerate me because I am your mums best friend." she reached for the velvet bag and held it. "keep this, you promised me that you would give it back to me when you were ash and made sure no one had to choose what I did." she looked at me, I knew she was trying to change the subject.
I stepped forward, my heart was pounding out of control, it always did when this cranky old woman was in my presence. I placed my hand over hers, feeling how warm it still was, "tamsin, I was mad at you when I was little because you left, then I didn't understand what I was feeling as I got older. My succubus traits muddied everything at such a critical point in my development. I hated a lot of things then, myself, my powers, and you. All things I didn't understand." I took a breath, my heart pounding as I struggled with what I wanted to say.
Tamsin pulled her hand out from underneath mine, "I get it, that's why I kept my distance from you. You were a teenager coming into the full blast of what it is to be a succubus and a nerd." she smiled lightly, "sorry, I had too." she sat back on the bed, "but now you are a beautiful young woman." the look in her eyes flickered a strange intensity, she paused, "I can say that cant I? Because its the truth, I didn't even recognize you when you were at the dal. You have grown up to be quite the incredible woman." Tamsin looked down at the floor, "sorry, my filter doesn't work when I have been drinking."
The Valkyrie stood up quickly, "keep the helmet, I am sure your mum can find a spot on her bookshelf." she grabbed her jacket and tried to walk past me, I reached out and grabbed her arm, "tamsin, stop." she paused as soon as she felt my hand on her. She looked down and then back in my eyes, "I have all of your birthday cards, all of the notes you sent with them, and this." I held the helmet, "it was the only thing I took with me when I left, carried it everywhere I went, because it reminded me of you." I had to stop and take a breath, the feelings I felt came rushing in as I was inches away from the Valkyrie, I swallowed, "for someone as old as you are, how could you not see it?" I looked in her eyes, I could feel mine gloss over.
Tamsin, took a breath, "I did see it, it was written all over your face, every time I looked at you...and what you said to me that day right before you saved me, I felt...It just wasn't right then...and now...you have a fiancé." she closed her eyes tight, and gently pulled my hand off her arm, whispering, "I have to go."
She walked out of my grasp and ran out of the crash pad. I gasped for air as my heart started to beat again, I held the velvet bag close to my heart and felt a tear slide down my face.
"mum, not much has changed around this hospital. I actually found of your old notebooks jammed up in that back research room you used to use."
I walked through the hospital with Sera, she was in her second week of residency and I stopped by to see her. Completely enjoying the fact that my daughter was following my footsteps in becoming a doctor. I had to admit, I missed being in the trauma room and getting my hands on traditional cases, my work now consisted of consult work or research work. "ha-ha I wonder if it is one of the ones from my aloe plant research your mom so inconveniently interrupted."
Sera pulled an aged and yellowing notebook out of her pocket, "it is, I made a few notes. You should keep working on it, you had the right idea and it could end up being a great natural alternative to a lot of the medications out there." she handed it to me, "oh, I have a surprise for you mum." She grabbed my elbow as we walked through my old floor unit.
We walked to the back of the floor to the nurses on call room, Sera pushed open the door, "Ann? I have a visitor here for you."
I smiled as I saw my old friend sitting at the small table drinking coffee, I could feel how fae she was and see it in her lack of aging over the last twenty years. Ann smiled and stood up, opening her arms for a hug, "Dr. Lewis, its so good to see you." she looked at me, "I know what you are thinking, you were caught up in a lot of things to even notice, especially with that lovely wife of yours." She winked at me, "trick and I are old friends, I am a blood healer. I have the ability to purify blood with my touch, hence why the blood king and I are a pals." she smiled, "your daughter, Dr. Lewis here picked up on me instantly on her first day."
I laughed, "well she is a little more gifted than me, it is good to see Ann." I looked at my daughter, "is this why you chose this hospital?"
She nodded, "yes, it is half and half human and fae. I am surprised gramps never told you, but its why Ann here can work here and no one notices that she never gets older. The staff is primarily fae who want to help humans, so we can move around and do our work without any one noticing."
I raised my eyebrows, "wow, I was oblivious for a very long time."
Ann laughed, "you were, more like you were deeply in love and could not see past it." she looked at her pager as it vibrated, "code call coming in." she looked at my daughter, "you ready for this one Dr. Lewis?"
sera smiled and nodded, "of course I am." Sera kissed my cheek, "I will see you later? Dinner at my place tonight?"
"yes, mom will be there before I, she is working a case with Kenzi downtown." I smiled and gently pushed my daughter to go, "get to work."
Sera rushed out of the on call room, closely followed by Ann, who stopped at the door looking back at me, "I think it would be good if you came back to work here, it would be a hoot to have two Dr. Lewis's on this floor. She is equally as talented as you and has your OCD." Ann winked at me and rushed out the door. I laughed as I walked out the hospital and flipped through my notebooks, seeing the changes my daughter had made and slowly thinking about maybe reapplying to my old job, again.
While I was walking down the street towards Sera's apartment, that was a block away from my old one, I felt Tamsin walk up behind me. I stopped to let her catch up, "Commander."
"captain." she looked at me, I could tell something was on her mind.
"what is it?"
Tamsin jammed her hands into her pockets, "I have been poking around in the soon to be son in law, and I found some weird things."
I took a breath, Tamsin had been adamant on he background check of Jase since Sera left the house for the apartment. "I will indulge you."
Tamsin frowned, "I know what you are thinking and you need to give me a chance." she looked at me hard and I could see something in her eyes I had not seen in a long time. It was the same look I saw when she told me about Sophia for the first time, "have you seen Anya lately?"
She shook her head, "sadly no, I know I need to apologize to her." she closed her eyes, "Jase has some gaps in his past that doesn't make sense."
I looked up into the night sky, "Tamsin, why are you doing this? Sera is happy." I glanced down at Tamsin and saw her flinch at the last part, "I know she is, but here." she pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to me.
I looked at it, it was a file from a dark fae contact of Tamsins, "please tell me that you are not going back to them?" I had been worried about her returning to the dark fae since she was falling into old habits.
"I am not, but I still held onto a few contacts, just in case." she nodded at the paper, "Jase is newly light fae, his family history does not make sense based off the way he has told it to you. The Watson family has been light fae at birth for thousands of years since they swore allegiance after the great war." she pointed at something else, "i also had a hard time tracing back his druid bloodline, druids are pretty cut and dry, like Valkyries. But here, there is a gap between his dawning and coming into his full powers. The math does not add up, I mean I am not a genius like you, but I can put two and two together to get five."
Smiling at the bad joke, I could see what Tamsin was getting at. I had studied enough fae family trees to notice they all followed a similar pattern, Jase's didn't make sense. I folded the paper up and handed it back to Tamsin, "keep it to yourself, I will look into it tomorrow at the compound. I hope it is just a clerical error."
Tamsin nodded, "I will meet you there." she took a step back and started to walk by, I blurted the question I had been holding out, "why are you doing this? You seem pretty adamant on bickering with Sera any chance you get, why the sudden change of heart?"
Tamsin met my eyes, "because, she is important to me." she smiled tightly, disappearing before I could ask my follow up question, the look in her eyes told me more than a question would.
I used my key to open Sera's apartment, and paused as I saw my wife and Jase sitting on the couch, closely. Both were laughing and I stared at the two, something was off. I cleared my throat, Jase looking up and moving quickly off the couch, his wide grin present. "Dr. Lewis! Good to see you, your wife just arrived and we were enjoying some wine." he offered to take my coat and I looked at him, something was strange and I didn't know if it was the lingering thoughts Tamsin left me with. Bo stood up, walking to me, holding out her hand for me to take. She pulled me into a light kiss and I could feel how flush her body was, it was as flush and warm as it was right before her and I made love, it was not the wine. I kept a hold onto Bo's hand as she led me back to the couch, giggling.
Jase came from the kitchen and offered me a glass of wine, Bo poked him, "jase here was just telling me a story about skinny dipping in the ocean."
"it was something we all did when we were kids in Sydney, the summers were long and hot." jase took the seat across from us, "Sera is on her way home, she just sent me a text. When she gets home we can work out what's for dinner." Jase winked at my wife, who giggled again.
My blood began to boil as it was certainly evident that my daughters fiancé was flirting with my wife, I calmed myself down as Bo's thoughts were muddy, she was on the verge of falling into her succubus ways. I stared at him and smiled, "I haven't had a tour of the apartment, yet. Jase, do you mind showing me around?"
Jase hopped up, "oh, pardon my lack of manners." he set down the glass of wine and walked over to me, I watched as Bo's eyes followed him intently, making me even more angry and jealous. My wife had not looked at another woman let alone man in our entire marriage, and now she was ogling this young man as if he was her favorite ice cream. "Dr. Lewis, if you will follow me I will show you Sera's small office, I set it up just for her."
I nodded and bent down to kiss Bo, full on the lips, letting her pull a little from me. I was hoping whatever was in her system would clear out with a little chi. When we pulled apart, she was still the same and giggly, whispering, "come back soon, love." her eyes flickered blue.
I sighed hard and stood up, following Jase up the stairs, focusing on what was in his head, I could not pick up anything other than thoughts of what could be for dinner and if he hid the dirty laundry well enough. He pushed open the door to Sera's small office, "this is her little haven, she spends quite a bit of time in here." he pointed to the couch that had a blanket and a pillow, "I guess in time I will get used too sleeping alone, the life of a doctors husband?" he smiled at me, "I am sure I could ask your wife for advice on that lifestyle." he winked at me.
the look in his eyes infuriated me, I smiled and spoke evenly, "jase, I appreciated you trying to be a good host, but I would also appreciate it if you went a little easier on the flirting with my wife."
his jaw dropped slightly, "I am sorry Dr. Lewis?" he was trying to hold his smile.
I looked at him dead in the eyes, I knew that they would be flashing grey, my emotions were at a high point, especially when it came to bo, "you heard me, just take it easy. That is your fiancé's mother."
he opened his mouth to issue a retort, when we both heard Bo holler, "noodle!" followed by Sera dropping her bag onto the floor. Jase smiled, "shall we go downstairs?"
he didn't wait for me to answer, he just walked downstairs and scooped up my daughter in a large hug. When he set her down he looked at me, before moving to the kitchen. Sera hugged me, "hey mum. Sorry I am late, but Ann and I got caught up in telling stories about when you were brand new."
I smiled at the thought of which story Ann had told her, "yea, I quickly learned to leave the exhaust valve open on a colostomy bag...but not without learning to also bring extra clothes to work." Sera laughed as I looked up and saw Jase leaning over the couch, whispering in Bo's ear. I watched as his hand brushed against her cheek and I swore I saw a gentle green pulse flow through his fingers and into Bo's cheek, before he moved back to the kitchen.
Sera tugged on my arm, "come mum, lets go figure out what to get for dinner." I nodded and sat back down on the couch next to my still giggling wife. Sera walked behind us, "maybe mom needs to lay off the wine."
"I agree." I gently grabbed her chin and pulled her to look at me, I didn't see any marks, but I could see the gentle haze in her eyes and the roaming of her hands on my clothes. "Lauren, you aura is at all time high right now...its killing me." I felt my jaw clench and looked up at Jase, who was lightly kissing my daughter, I also caught a slight pulse of green move into her.
"jase, get your hands off my daughter." my voice came out louder than I wanted, scaring Sera into looking at me, "mum, what the hell? We are engaged, and its not like kissing isn't the only thing we have done."
I stared hard at Jase, when I suddenly felt Tamsin in the area, her thoughts pushing into my mind as fast as she could send them. He walked over to me, "your daughter is right, we are engaged. As I understand it, you and Mrs. Lewis did not even wait to be engaged, before indulging in sin."
I stood up from the couch, keeping my eyes on him, "sera, grab your mother and leave. Now."
Sera furrowed her brow at me, "what are you talking about mum?" she moved to stand next to Jase, "mom just had to much wine, that's all." Jase stopped and smiled at me, he knew that I knew and he let me in his thoughts, he reached back and grabbed Sera's hand. Giving her a full pulse of green energy, I watched as she began to replicate the same symptoms Bo was exhibiting. He led her to sit down on the couch next to Bo, "yes, you should relax and join us." he sat down and reached for Sera, kissing her and as he pulled his mouth back, I saw a steady green ribbon of energy leave her. I moved and tried to push him off of my daughter, he caught my hand and began pulsing me hard. I felt woozy and was losing my balance. He guided me to the couch, "ah, Dr. Lewis, I am surprised that it took you this long to figure it out. But that is part of my mystique, my charm some would say."
I rolled my head back, mumbling, "you are an incubus...not a druid."
He nodded as he sat on the table in front of the couch, "I am, druids are boring and insignificant. A perfect cover because they are just as charming as the incubus." he reached over and pulsed Bo again, sending her into a lull. "for as powerful as these two are, they were easy to manipulate and both taste fantastic." he smirked at me, "I do intend to kill them both after I harvest their energy and blood, so I can reproduce my own little succubae." he stood up, "I had intentions of just impregnating Sera as soon as possible and killing her after she became ash so our child would take the seat and I could eliminate the light fae completely. But you ruined that." he bent, his mouth hovering over mine as he pulled from me, I didn't feel the immense pleasure I did when bo did it, instead I felt a tremendous amount of pain and emptiness filling my body. He stopped and smiled, "I will kill you and your wife, make it look like she went a little overboard in the bedroom."
I mumbled, "dark fae..."
he nodded, "of course. Your daughter has always talked about eliminating the sides and letting the fae choose as they may without harm, but I want only one side too, dark." he cocked his head to the side, "she fell for me without too much after I used my powers, succubus are so susceptible to their own kind." he folded his arms, "I knew that disgusting Valkyrie was digging around, I could see it on her face when I surprised Sera at the dal, she was suspicious of me from day one and the same dark fae contacts she holds onto are the same ones who I hold close."
he let our a breath, moving to the side table by the door, opening the drawer and pulling out a ancient bloodletting set, "I need to get to work." he grabbed at Bo, who was completely oblivious to what was happening, "their blood is so powerful on its own, I could get a pretty penny for just a tube of it, but I intend to use it for greater purposes." he jabbed a needled into Bo's arm, I reached to pull at his hand and Jase pulsed me again, "not now, you will have a turn. Your superfae blood is equally as valuable."
I watched as the blood traveled down into a large jar jase set on the floor, he then moved to sera, pausing to look at her, "I did start to actually have some feelings for her." Jase then jabbed Sera with a needle, he stood up, "it should only take a minute." he moved over to me and crouched in front of me, "i only wish that I could have a real taste of your wife before I kill her, would you mind? I have always longed to know what the infamous unaligned succubus tasted like."
Jase waited for a moment, "no? I understand, she is quite beautiful. I would be jealous too." he grabbed my arm and jabbed a needle into it, letting the blood flow freely.
I struggled under the incubus haze, I could feel tears falling as I watched helplessly as Sera and Bo smiled and giggled at Jase as he moved around. I closed my eyes and suddenly felt Tamsin in the building, I smiled as she moved closer, "jase, come here."
jase smiled, "Doctor, are you asking what I think you are?" he moved closer, his hands resting on my knees, pulsing me, "are you sure your wife wont mind?"
I smiled uttering a "fuck you." as Tamsin crashed through the front door and barreled into Jase, her wings out, carrying the two of them into the wall with a loud smash. I heard the air push out of Jase as he hit the floor, Tamsin looked at me, her entire being glowing, "this shitbag is dark fae working for the asshole who sent the cloudsmen, they want to harvest Bo and sera's blood to start cloning super succubus." Tamsin looked down at Jase who was struggling to breath. I waved a limp hand at Bo and Sera, "help them."
Tamsin nodded and went to bo, looking at me quickly, "just remember, you told me to do this." she bent and brushed her lips over Bo's, it didn't take much for Bo to react and pull Tamsin into a kiss and began pulling a gold colored ribbon from her. Tamsin had to push Bo away from her, her eyes wide as she stepped back, "holy shit captain, now I understand the constant need for naughty time you two have." Bo looked over at me, clear eyed and confused, "Lauren!" she yanked the needle out of her arm and went to me, her hands on my face, I looked away from her and at Tamsin, "Sera..."
Tamsin nodded and I watched as she took a deep shaky breath and leaned slowly over my daughter, her jaw clenched as she brushed her lips over Sera's, waiting for my daughter to respond. Tamsin glanced over at me, a pained look in her eyes, until I told her that Sera was poisoned by Jase, she nodded and placed a light kiss on Sera's lips, finally Sera responded and leaned into the kiss, pulling from Tamsin like Bo had, I watched as my daughter reached up and held the Valkyrie close, taking more from her as the two kissed passionately, there was more in the kiss than a need to feed and heal. Tamsin struggled and was finally able to pull back, breathless, sera looked in her eyes, the two of them holding a gaze that was heavy and followed with so many things that were left unspoken.
Tamsin opened her mouth to say something, when she was pulled back away from Sera and thrown to the ground. Jase kicked her hard in the stomach as Tamsin hit the wall, he walked over to Sera, who was still in a weakened state and picked her up by the hair, "I knew there was something strange between you and that thing, you held onto that helmet far too much for just friends."
Bo eyes flashed blue and she charged after Jase, her protective mother nature in full blast. Jase caught her by the throat as she reached him, lifting her up into the air, "you are both still very weak." he opened his mouth and began to pull from the two women in his grip. Bo and Sera could not pull back s they both clawed at his hands. When he had enough, he dropped them both to the ground. "you're family is such a pain in the ass, they never just give in, its always a fight." he walked over to the needles and tubing, he grabbed my jaw, pulling me hard to his mouth as he fed from me. I was pushed back into the couch and I could feel how weak I was, I was not sure I could endure another feed.
Jase reached for sera and pulled her by the arm and returned to his original work of bleeding her out. Just as he stood up to move to my wife, a glowing hand reached out and grabbed at his neck, lifting him off the ground, "this family is a pain in the ass, but my pain in the ass and I wont let anyone hurt them." Jase struggled to peel Tamsins fingers off his throat, making her squeeze harder.
Tamsin looked at me, as if to gain my permission for what she was thinking, I closed my eyes. Tamsin dropped him to the ground as he coughed, "dammit captain." She moved to Sera, picking her up and setting her back on the couch next to me, gently slapping the girl awake, "kid, wake up and help your moms." sera winced and opened her eyes, "Tamsin..."
Tamsin smiled, "not now." the Valkyrie laid her hand on Sera's cheek, "we have to get you and your moms out of here."
Tamsin straightened up and gasped as she saw Sera's eyes turn bright purple and blue. Sera held her hand out, it was also glowing purple. She looked at Tamsin, "move out of the way, I need to talk to my fiancé." Tamsin turned to look at Jase, who was clutching his throat, gagging. Tamsin stepped to the side as Sera stood up, walking towards the incubus. "you want my power, you will feel my power."
Tamsin ran to Bo, kissing her again to get her to recover. She helped Bo sit me up so Bo could push chi back into me and help me out of the incubus haze. I stood up, with the help of Tamsin and Bo, I watched as Sera's fingers were closing slightly, forcing out deeper choking sounds from Jase.
Sera glanced at us, "leave. I will finish this." I could feel the anger radiating off her and saw her eyes burn brighter, as she moved closer to Jase, "I loved you, but not enough to kill you for what you have done."
Jase's eyes began to glow a bright green as he tried to pull from Sera, instead he choked as her hand physically came to rest on his throat. Tamsin left Bo and I, running to Sera's side, setting a hand on her shoulder, "don't, let him face the light fae punishment. It will be much worse and lengthier than any quick death. It is what he deserves." Sera looked at the Valkyrie, "get my mom and mum out of here."
"I cant do that until you put this asshole down, I would have already killed him if your mum didn't tell me not too." tamsin placed her hand on Sera's cheek, "you aren't a killer."
Sera pushed Jase against the wall, "he needs to die, for this." I could hear in her voice the succubus was slowly taking over, wanting to end Jase.
Tamsin swallowed hard, whispering, "do it for me."
Sera's eyes shut tightly as she whispered, "That's not fair, Tamsin."
"life isn't fair, Sera." Tamsin smiled lightly.
Sera sighed and let go of her grip. Jase fell to the floor in a unconscious pile of pain. Tamsin let out a breath, and looked at Bo and I, "go grab the duct tape from my truck. We will tape his mouth shut so the bastard cant do any more damage, then I will take him to the compound. Finnegan is waiting for us."
"there's some upstairs in my office. I want him out of here now." Sera walked to me as Bo ran upstairs, "are you okay mum?"
"I will be, I am sorry that I didn't figure it out sooner." I looked over at the still unconscious incubus that Tamsin was tying up with the electrical cord she ripped out of the couch side lamp.
Sera shook her head, "I didn't figure it out and I am smarter than you." she tried smiling to make me feel better as Bo ran back down with the duct tape, throwing it too Tamsin who moved quickly in wrapping Jase up.
Tamsin dragged Jase by the collar to the doorway, dropping him with a hard thud, "I am going to take him now." she looked at the three of us, "will you be okay? I will come back after I drop him in the deepest dungeon Finnegan has."
Bo nodded as she helped me up, "I think so, I am going to take Lauren and Sera home, its safer there." she moved to Tamsin, hugging her, "be careful."
"I will, If he wakes up I can keep him occupied with thoughts of wanting to kill himself." she looked at me, "Captain, you're good?"
"just get him out of here." I leaned on Bo, I could feel my anger rising as I looked at the still unconscious incubus. Tamsin saluted me and bent to pick up Jase by his collar.
"wait." sera walked over and bent down to Jase, she pulled off her engagement ring and jammed it into his pocket, she stood back up folding her arms as Tamsin began to pull him behind her. "tamsin..."
the Valkyrie looked back, sera took quick steps and kissed tamsin on the corner of her mouth, whispering, "thank you...i...um." tamsin smiled as she interrupted Sera, "don't." she then turned and left us, listening to the gentle thud as she dragged Jase down the stairs, forgoing the elevator that was right outside the front door.
hopefully the transition between Lauren and Sera's pov are clear, it just made sense to segeway it like that, now that the story is becoming more about Sera and less about Bo and lauren...huge chapter I know and there will be more to come as I continue on. I hope you guys like it, this was definitely a different one for me.